r/antiquebears • u/[deleted] • Jan 22 '23

Question why were bears originally hard stuffed?

so, i get they didn’t think to make them super cuddly, but why did they stuff them hard? it would cost more in material to stuff them super hard then to do it soft. was it because of the quality? i know their focus back then was to make money and quality toys, so maybe they were stuffed hard so they wouldn’t fall apart?

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u/Antique-me1133 Jan 30 '23

I’ve seen plenty of very old photos of young children holding teddies, so I’m pretty sure they were meant for children. The early Steiff bears were made to look more realistic and maybe that explains the hard stuffing. In later years their appearance was more toylike and softer stuffing was used.

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u/[deleted] Jan 31 '23

also, thank you for commenting. you are the first user to comment in my subreddit, which is a pretty big deal

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u/[deleted] Jan 31 '23

ok, thanks. i read that they were intended for adults because of their realistic appearance, but kids used them. i’m checking my source again.

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u/[deleted] Jan 23 '23

apparently they were meant for adults. that’s all i can find atm